The 145-pound title bout was officially announced during Friday’s broadcast of Strikeforce Challengers 19 on Showtime.

While seen by many as unbeatable, Santos has not had an opportunity to display her power inside the cage since a June 2010 stoppage of Jan “Cuddles” Finney. Santos’ Strikeforce contract expired after the bout, and she was unable to come to terms on a new deal. After Zuffa subsidiary Forza LLC purchased Strikeforce in March, Santos campaigned for a fight in the organization.

Her wish finally has been granted.

Santos has finished all four of her Strikeforce opponents with strikes, and she became the promotion’s first female champion in August 2009 by defeating Gina “Conviction” Carano. Strikeforce has faced criticism in the past for matching up Santos against undersized opponents, including Finney, but that will not be an issue against Yamanaka.

Unlike Santos’ most recent Japanese opponent, former Smackgirl 128-pound titleholder Hitomi “Girlfight Monster” Akano, the 5-foot-11 Yamanaka will hold a significant height and reach advantage over the champion and fought at weights close to 170 pounds early in her career.

A former dominatrix, Yamanaka turned her attention to MMA in 2006. After one amateur fight in May, she made her pro debut six months later and went on to win her first four fights. Yamanaka’s lone defeat, a 2008 submission loss to Akano, was avenged in the pair’s rematch in March 2010. Yamanaka has finished her past three opponents and brings an eight-fight winning streak into her Strikeforce debut.

Santos will rightfully enter the title fight as a significant favorite, but for the first time in her Strikeforce career, she will face an opponent who is larger than her. Yamanaka has shown marked improvement in recent fights and has improved her striking, but her defensive boxing remains a work in progress. If Santos is able to overcome the challenger’s long reach, she may be able to score a knockout victory in short order.

Parma, Ohio native Jessica “Evil” Eye (4-1 MMA, 1-0 BFC) made the most of a big opportunity on this Saturday at Bellator 51 in the nearby city of Canton. Competing in front of a partisan crowd, Eye earned a split-decision victory over Casey “KO” Noland (3-2 MMA, 0-1 BFC) in a bout that didn’t play out as closely as the scorecards might suggest.

The fighters faced off in a catchweight contest after Noland was unable to make the contracted 125-pound weight limit. Eye wasted little time in bloodying the face of Noland with punches and a knee and defended well against her opponent’s takedown attempts. Much of the opening round was spent in a clinch, where Eye landed knees that drew cheers from her supporters in the crowd.

In round two, Eye kept her distance early on and landed hooks and a kick to the body before Noland looked for a takedown again. It was Eye who took Noland down, however, and she scored with a knee as the fight returned to the feet. Noland was more effective with her strikes in the final round and landed leg kicks that were met with counter hooks from Eye. Noland clinched up again, and Eye connected with another nice knee strike before the bell.

All three judges scored the contest 29-28, with two awarding the bout to Eye. The third judge, John Beltz, strangely scored the fight for Noland, which appeared to surprise even Noland herself. An elated Eye leapt into the air after she was announced as the winner. She may now have earned her way into the rumored 125-pound women’s tournament in 2012, but Bellator has yet to formally announce any plans for the potential tournament.

Evinger entered the fight after Rodriguez’s original opponent, Rumble on the River champion Sarah “Too Sweet” Alpar, was forced to withdraw.

Evinger was dominant throughout the brief bout and followed up on early strikes by slamming Rodriguez to the mat. From there, she moved to Rodriguez’s back and secured a rear-naked choke that forced Rodriguez to submit at the 1:37 mark of round one.

The win halted Evinger’s two-fight losing skid that included a July defeat to Olympic medalist Sara McMann.

With the victory, Evinger is expected to challenge for Alpar’s title at an XFL event in December. The tentative bout most likely will be contested at 125 pounds, and Evinger will move down from her long-time home at bantamweight.

Women take center stage on Oct. 1 charity fight cards

In the spirit of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, leading regional promotions Freestyle Cage Fighting and BlackEye Promotions kick off October with a pair of charity events on Oct. 1.

FCF 49 in Shawnee, Okla., features 12 women’s bouts while BlackEye 5 in Fletcher, N.C., features a total of eight women’s matchups. Proceeds from both events will go toward programs that aid cancer patients and raise awareness about the disease.

In the Freestyle Cage Fighting 49 main event, knockout artist Kaitlin Young (4-5) looks to get back on the winning track when she faces recent Strikeforce title challenger Finney (8-10). Young has not fought since dropping a close but unanimous decision to current Strikeforce fighter Julie “Fireball” Kedzie at a Jackson’s MMA Series event in April. Finney most recently faced boxing star and MMA convert Holly “Hottie” Holm earlier this month but was stopped by a kick to the body in round three.

The BlackEye Promotions 5 headliner features a 125-pound bout between former Strikeforce title challenger Roxanne “The Happy Warrior” Modafferi (15-8) and rising star Barb “Little Warrior” Honchak (4-1). The fighters enter the bout as polar opposites. Modafferi is currently in the midst of the first three-fight losing streak of her career; Honchak has won all three of her fights this year and is progressively moving up the 125-pound ranks. Modafferi’s most recent bout, a razor-thin loss to Hitomi Akano, was her second fight at 125.

Injuries have resulted in late changes to two other women’s bouts on the main card, but seven fights remain intact. Only Ivana Coleman, whose scheduled opponent Sofie Bagherdai withdrew from the card due to a rib injury, awaits a replacement foe.

The complete lineup of female fights at BlackEye Promotions 5 is as follows:

Cassie Rodish (1-3) defeated Mariah Johnson (0-5) by TKO (punches) at the 3:10 mark of round one at “Midwest Cage Championships 36: Back in Action.” The event took place Sept. 23 in Des Moines, Iowa. Rodish dominated the bout throughout and picked up her first victory as a professional with the stoppage while Johnson has suffered back-to-back TKO defeats this year.

Nohime Dennison (1-1) defeated Lynae Lovato (0-1) by unanimous decision at “United: MMA Bash” on Sept. 24 in Albuquerque, N.M. Dennison, a product of Jackson/Winkeljohn MMA, won for the first time after falling victim to an armbar from the much more experienced Chelsea Colarelli in June.

A number of other women’s bouts planned for mid-September were canceled due to injury or illness. Standout striker Germaine “The Iron Lady” de Randamie was removed from the Strikeforce Challengers 19 card after the promotion was unable to secure a replacement opponent.

Upcoming fights

In addition to the 20 female fights booked for Freestyle Cage Fighting 49 and BlackEye Promotions 5, two additional matchups are scheduled for early October.

Jennifer “Lil’ Ice” Berg (2-3) faces former training partner Darla Harris (0-0), who went 2-1 as an amateur, at “Bring the Thunder MMA 2: Genesis” on Oct. 1 in Pueblo, Colo. Despite finding mixed success in the pro ranks after a successful amateur career, Berg remains a fan favorite in Colorado and is renowned for her aggressive striking style. Both of her pro wins have come via a form of knockout. Harris earned a TKO victory in an amateur bout late this past year and makes her professional debut against the hard-hitting Berg, who was once her coach at the Grudge Training Center.

Strikeforce veteran Maiju “Mai” Kujala (6-3) faces unbeaten Spanish prospect Karla Benitez (6-0) at “Cage 16: 1st Defense” on Oct. 8 in Espoo, Finland. Kujala will have the support of the Finnish fans as she competes in her home country for the second time in five weeks. Kujala stopped late replacement opponent Ieva Slezaite at “Carelia Fight 7″ on Sept. 3. Benitez has won twice this year and most recently earned a unanimous-decision victory over fellow prospect Simona Soukupova at “Hombres de Honor 26″ on Aug. 19.

(Pictured: Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos)

MMAjunkie.com publishes the Women’s MMA Report every other Monday. Its author, Robert Sargent, is a veteran MMA journalist who also runs MMARising.com. Feel free to email us at news [AT] mmajunkie.com with any questions, news tips or suggestions.

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